NameCensus.

UK surname

Goodfellow

A surname derived from a nickname for a friendly, amiable, or helpful person.

In the 1881 census there were 2,642 people recorded with the Goodfellow surname, ranking it #1,680 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 3,266, ranked #2,082, down from #1,680 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to London parishes, Chilmark and Govan Combination. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Earlston Stow and Clovernfords Area, County Durham and Northumberland.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Goodfellow is 3,485 in 1999. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 23.6%.

1881 census count

2,642

Ranked #1,680

Modern count

3,266

2016, ranked #2,082

Peak year

1999

3,485 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Goodfellow had 2,642 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #1,680 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 3,266 in 2016, ranked #2,082.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 3,186 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Goodfellow surname distribution map

The map shows where the Goodfellow surname is concentrated in each census or modern distribution year. Darker areas mean a stronger local concentration.

Distribution map

Goodfellow surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Goodfellow over time

The table below tracks recorded surname counts and rank from the 19th-century census years through the modern adult-register period.

Year Period Count Rank
1851 historical 1,848 #1,562
1861 historical 1,950 #1,500
1881 historical 2,642 #1,680
1891 historical 2,872 #1,652
1901 historical 3,186 #1,762
1911 historical 2,703 #1,915
1997 modern 3,216 #2,003
1998 modern 3,399 #1,969
1999 modern 3,485 #1,949
2000 modern 3,427 #1,972
2001 modern 3,346 #1,973
2002 modern 3,425 #1,980
2003 modern 3,318 #1,989
2004 modern 3,307 #1,996
2005 modern 3,241 #2,009
2006 modern 3,201 #2,038
2007 modern 3,210 #2,055
2008 modern 3,213 #2,066
2009 modern 3,247 #2,090
2010 modern 3,333 #2,084
2011 modern 3,332 #2,060
2012 modern 3,245 #2,075
2013 modern 3,309 #2,074
2014 modern 3,369 #2,051
2015 modern 3,314 #2,059
2016 modern 3,266 #2,082

Geography

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Where Goodfellows are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around London parishes, Chilmark, Govan Combination and Edinburgh. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Earlston Stow and Clovernfords Area, County Durham, Northumberland, Langholm and Eskdale and South Norfolk. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Some modern areas include a three-digit suffix, such as Leeds 110. The suffix is a small-area code, so it stays in the table while the prose uses the plain place name.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 London parishes London 1
2 Chilmark Wiltshire
3 Govan Combination Lanark
4 London parishes London 3
5 Edinburgh Edinburgh

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Earlston Stow and Clovernfords Area Scottish Borders
2 County Durham 010 County Durham
3 Northumberland 006 Northumberland
4 Langholm and Eskdale Dumfries and Galloway
5 South Norfolk 009 South Norfolk

Forenames

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First names often paired with Goodfellow

These lists show first names that appear often with the Goodfellow surname in historical and recent records.

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Goodfellow

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Goodfellow, this points to the kinds of places where the surname is most concentrated today.

These neighbourhood labels describe areas, not individual people. They are useful because surnames often cluster through family history, migration, housing patterns and local work. A surname can be strongest in one type of neighbourhood even when people with that name live across the country.

The UK classification gives the national picture. The London classification is more specific to the capital, where housing, age profile, tenure and population mix can look quite different from the rest of the UK.

UK neighbourhood type

UK Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities

Group

Rural Amenity

Nationally, the Goodfellow surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Rural Amenity, within Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities. This does not mean every Goodfellow household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

This Group comprises older parents or retirees, with no resident dependent children, and with the lowest residential densities in this Supergroup. Predominantly UK-born, residents typically live in detached houses, although others do live in semi-detached and terraced properties. The level of multiple car ownership is the highest in this Supergroup. Most houses are owner occupied although social renting is also present. Many concentrations occur in high amenity rural locations, such as Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Wider pattern

Pervasive throughout the UK, members of this Supergroup typically own (or are buying) their detached, semi-detached or terraced homes. They are also typically educated to A Level/Highers or degree level and work in skilled or professional occupations. Typically born in the UK, some families have children, although the median adult age is above 45 and some property has become under-occupied after children have left home. This Supergroup is pervasive not only in suburban locations, but also in neighbourhoods at or beyond the edge of cities that adjoin rural parts of the country.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Goodfellow is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers, part of The Greater London Mix. This gives the surname a London-specific profile rather than forcing the capital into the same pattern as the rest of the country.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Mainly located in Inner London, these neighbourhoods retain a diverse employment structure, with some concentration in associated professional and technical occupations rather than skilled trades or construction. Social renting is more common and levels of homeownership are low. Many residents identify as Black. There is a lower than average rate of marriage or civil partnership, few that are very old (85 or over) and higher than average incidence of disability.

Wider London pattern

A Supergroup embodying London's diversity in many respects, apart from low numbers of residents identifying as of Bangladeshi, Indian, Pakistani or Other (non-Chinese) Asian ethnicity. There is lower than average prevalence of families with dependent children, while there are above average occurrences of never-married individuals and single-person households. The age distribution is skewed towards younger, single residents and couples without children, with many individuals identifying as of mixed or multiple ethnicity. Social rented or private rented housing is slightly more prevalent than average, and many residents live in flats. Individuals typically work in professional and associated roles in public administration, education or health rather than in elementary occupations in agriculture, energy, water, construction or manufacturing. Incidence of students is slightly below average. Individuals declaring no religion are more prevalent than average and non-use of English at home is below average.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Goodfellow is most concentrated in decile 1 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname towards the less healthy end of the index.

Lower deciles point towards weaker access to healthy assets or stronger exposure to local hazards. Higher deciles point towards stronger access and fewer hazards.

1
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Goodfellow falls in decile 7 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname near the middle of the scale.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

7
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Goodfellow is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 30-40 mbit/s.

The scale below places that band in context, from slower local download bands through to faster ones.

6
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

This describes the area pattern most associated with Goodfellow, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Goodfellow

The surname Goodfellow is of English origin, deriving from the Middle English words "good" and "felaw" meaning "good companion." It first appeared in the 13th century as a descriptive nickname for someone who was considered a pleasant and agreeable person to be around.

The earliest recorded instance of the name Goodfellow can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Bedfordshire from 1273, which mentions a John Goodfellow. The name also appeared in various other medieval records such as the Subsidy Rolls of Yorkshire from 1301, listing a Robert Goodfelawe.

Variations in spelling were common in earlier times, and the name was also recorded as Goodfelaw, Goodfelowe, and Goodfellay. Over time, the spelling evolved into its modern form, Goodfellow.

One notable early bearer of the name was William Goodfellow, who was born in Somerset in the late 15th century and served as a Member of Parliament for Bath in 1529 and 1536.

Another prominent individual with this surname was Sir John Goodfellow, a wealthy merchant and alderman of London in the early 17th century. He was a benefactor to the city and established several charitable trusts.

In the 18th century, Robert Goodfellow (1718-1785) was a renowned English botanist and naturalist who made significant contributions to the study of plants and their classification.

The Goodfellow name also has a connection to the town of Goodfellowship in Yorkshire, which is believed to have derived its name from the surname itself, further reinforcing its meaning of good companionship.

One of the most famous bearers of the Goodfellow surname was Arthur Goodfellow (1836-1914), a British Army officer who served in the Indian Rebellion of 1857 and later became a Lieutenant-General in the British Army.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Goodfellow families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Goodfellow surname. Use the location tables for concentration, then the name and occupation tables for the people behind the surname.

Top counties

Total is the county count. Frequency and index adjust for local population size, so they are better concentration signals. Middlesex leads with 310 Goodfellows recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.20x.

County Total Index
Middlesex 310 1.20x
Cumberland 198 8.91x
Surrey 164 1.30x
Staffordshire 152 1.74x
Wiltshire 148 6.48x
Northumberland 135 3.51x
Lanarkshire 116 1.39x
Durham 107 1.39x
Hampshire 95 1.80x
Lancashire 95 0.31x
Cornwall 73 2.50x
Midlothian 72 2.08x
Cheshire 57 1.00x
Roxburghshire 56 11.97x
Kent 54 0.61x
Northamptonshire 54 2.22x
Yorkshire 54 0.21x
Angus 51 2.13x
Somerset 50 1.20x
Glamorgan 46 1.02x
Kincardineshire 41 13.04x
Selkirkshire 40 17.12x
Berwickshire 36 11.51x
Dorset 34 2.01x
Warwickshire 26 0.40x
Leicestershire 25 0.87x
Sussex 25 0.57x
Dumfriesshire 23 4.03x
Hertfordshire 23 1.29x
Renfrewshire 23 1.15x
Essex 22 0.43x
Fife 20 1.31x
Devon 18 0.33x
Lincolnshire 17 0.41x
Wigtownshire 17 4.96x
East Lothian 13 3.80x
Huntingdonshire 13 2.54x
Suffolk 13 0.41x
Aberdeenshire 11 0.46x
Bedfordshire 9 0.67x
Perthshire 9 0.78x
Buteshire 7 4.47x
Channel Islands 7 0.91x
Derbyshire 7 0.17x
Nottinghamshire 7 0.20x
Royal Navy 7 2.27x
Ayrshire 6 0.31x
Cambridgeshire 6 0.37x
Nairnshire 6 7.61x
Shropshire 6 0.27x
Carmarthenshire 5 0.46x
Denbighshire 5 0.51x
Norfolk 4 0.10x
Worcestershire 4 0.12x
Banffshire 3 0.56x
Peeblesshire 3 2.47x
Westmorland 3 0.53x
Berkshire 2 0.10x
Gloucestershire 2 0.04x
Merionethshire 2 0.42x
Orkney 2 0.70x
Pembrokeshire 2 0.24x
Stirlingshire 2 0.21x
Dunbartonshire 1 0.14x
Monmouthshire 1 0.05x
Rutland 1 0.53x
Sutherland 1 0.50x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Lambeth in Surrey leads with 47 Goodfellows recorded in 1881 and an index of 2.09x.

Place Total Index
Lambeth 47 2.09x
Stoke Upon Trent 47 5.09x
Govan 40 1.94x
Islington London 38 1.52x
Barony 35 1.66x
Salford 35 3.88x
Chilmark 32 653.06x
Fovant 29 585.86x
Alston 27 65.90x
Kensington London 26 1.81x
Mile End Old Town London 22 4.00x
Bethnal Green London 21 1.87x
Bewcastle 21 267.18x
South Leith 21 5.39x
St George Hanover Square 21 4.62x
Wolstanton 20 7.56x
Bervie 19 101.99x
Portsea 19 1.83x
Alnwick 18 27.25x
Heworth 18 11.89x
Edinburgh St Cuthberts 17 1.22x
Leicester St Margaret 16 2.29x
Chelsea London 15 1.93x
Kettering 15 15.27x
Kingston On Thames 15 4.96x
Liff Benvie 15 4.13x
Mylor 15 76.57x
Selkirk 15 22.79x
St Pancras London 15 0.72x
Yarrow 15 264.55x
Battersea 14 1.47x
Camberwell 14 0.85x
Great Grimsby 14 5.34x
Langholm 14 34.15x
St Marylebone London 14 1.02x
Aston 13 0.73x
Fulham London 13 3.47x
Hackney London 13 0.90x
Mertoun 13 214.52x
Tottenham 13 3.16x
Walsall Foreign 13 2.89x
Birmingham 12 0.55x
Bury St Edmunds St James 12 14.29x
Clapham 12 3.72x
Glasgow 12 0.81x
Jedburgh 12 26.18x
Makerston 12 356.08x
Newton In Ashton Under 12 21.34x
St Andrews 12 17.25x
Ware 12 23.52x
East Woodhay 11 81.42x
Gillingham 11 6.06x
Liverpool 11 0.59x
Newington 11 1.15x
Portsmouth 11 9.03x
Solport 11 500.00x
Thirlwall 11 211.13x
Tynemouth 11 5.35x
Westminster St John 11 3.50x
Aberdeen St Nicholas 10 2.24x
Burslem 10 4.01x
Crawford 10 64.18x
Dover St James 10 25.90x
Eglwysilan 10 12.82x
Frome 10 10.06x
Garvock 10 264.55x
Maryhill 10 6.12x
Paddington London 10 1.05x
Scaleby 10 242.13x
Southampton St Mary 10 3.00x
West Ham 10 0.89x
Arthuret 9 38.83x
Bishop Auckland 9 8.73x
Galashiels 9 10.42x
Leeds 9 0.62x
Merthyr Tydfil 9 2.08x
Pentridge 9 432.69x
Whitchurch 9 37.01x
Whithorn 9 34.44x
Woolwich 9 2.77x

Top female names

These are the female first names most often recorded with the Goodfellow surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
Mary 149
Elizabeth 89
Sarah 67
Ann 49
Jane 47
Emma 38
Hannah 36
Margaret 31
Annie 27
Eliza 21
Martha 21
Fanny 19
Catherine 18
Ellen 18
Emily 16
Isabella 16
Maria 16
Florence 15
Louisa 15
Charlotte 13
Ada 12
Harriet 12
Alice 11
Edith 10
Agnes 9
Rebecca 9
Anne 8
Caroline 7
Elizth. 7
Jessie 6
Susan 6
Amelia 5
Beatrice 5
Betsy 5
Clara 5
Eleanor 5
Frances 5
Kate 5
Laura 5
Lizzie 5
Matilda 5
Rose 5
Sophia 5
Amy 4
Esther 4
Lucy 4
Susannah 4
Bridget 3
Harriett 3
Maud 3

Top male names

These are the male first names most often recorded with the Goodfellow surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
William 133
John 124
George 77
Thomas 65
James 63
Henry 49
Robert 42
Charles 40
Joseph 32
Arthur 23
Frederick 19
Alfred 18
Edward 17
Samuel 13
Harry 11
Richard 11
Walter 11
Tom 10
Frank 9
Wm. 9
Edwin 8
Francis 7
Hector 7
Matthew 7
Thos. 7
Albert 6
Ernest 6
Herbert 6
Stephen 6
Benjamin 5
Fredk. 5
Peter 5
Adam 4
Archibald 4
Edgar 4
Hugh 4
Ralph 4
Sampson 4
Sidney 4
Willm. 4
Aaron 3
Earnest 3
Geo. 3
Jacob 3
Jonathan 3
Joshua 3
Philip 3
Sydney 3
Alexander 2
Nathan 2

FAQ

Goodfellow surname: questions and answers

How common was the Goodfellow surname in 1881?

In 1881, 2,642 people were recorded with the Goodfellow surname. That placed it at #1,680 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Goodfellow surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 3,266 in 2016. That gives Goodfellow a modern rank of #2,082.

What does the Goodfellow surname mean?

A surname derived from a nickname for a friendly, amiable, or helpful person.

What does the Goodfellow map show?

The map shows local surname concentration for the selected year. Darker areas have a stronger concentration of Goodfellow bearers relative to the surrounding population.

What records is this surname page based on?

The historical counts come from census surname records. The modern counts and neighbourhood summaries come from later surname distribution records. Counts are recorded bearers in those records, not a live estimate of everyone with the name today.